David Kates brings years of experience as a professional conductor and church musician to the College of Music. Prior to coming to CCU, Dr. Kates was a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he conducted the University Singers chamber choir and taught undergraduate conducting. Dr. Kates has served as a clinician and festival conductor around the region, and has conducted many major works for chorus and orchestra, including most recently Gjeilo’s Sunrise Mass, Honegger’s King David, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Dvorak’s Te Deum and Handel’s Messiah. Over his career he has conducted performances with the Colorado Chamber Orchestra, the Boulder Philharmonic, the Littleton Symphony Orchestra and the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra.

Dr. Kates has been active in the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), serving at the state, regional and national levels. He is a past Editor of The Colorado Choral Director, and has presented workshops and published with state organizations in Colorado and Tennessee, as well as in The Choral Journal. His church choirs have performed at state and regional ACDA conferences. He has also been an active member of Choristers Guild, Southwest Liederkrantz, Conductors Guild, Chorus America, and the Hymn Society of America.

In addition to his degree coursework, Dr. Kates completed Music Director Certification courses at the Iliff School of Theology, interned at the Santa Fe Opera and was an apprentice conductor with the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra. An active worship leader, he directs the music program and Fine Arts Series at Littleton United Methodist Church.